The President's Daily Brief - February 9th, 2024: Ukraine Leadership Shakeup, Moscow's Reliance On North Korea, & Stolen US Weapons Technology

Episode Date: February 9, 2024

In this episode of The President's Daily Brief:     Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has officially removed his top general from his post leading the country’s military in a significant leadership shake-up. Russia is increasingly relying on North Korean made ballistic missiles for their war effort in Ukraine, prompting outrage this week from U.S. diplomats at the UN. U.S.-backed forces in Syria are making a plea for greater military aid in the wake of a deadly drone attack by Iranian-backed militants. In our 'Back of the Brief' segment, we’ll dive into reports that China, Russia and Iran are stepping up efforts to illegally acquire sensitive U.S. technology for their weapons programs. Please remember to subscribe if you enjoyed this episode of The President's Daily Brief.     Email: [e-mail] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This podcast is sponsored by Blackout Coffee. Start your day off with a hot cup of American-made Blackout Coffee. It's delicious, I guarantee that. It's family-owned, premium coffee, fresh-roasted, and yes, you've heard me correct in the past. It's shipped out within 48 hours of roasting. Go to blackout coffee.com, promo code PDB, for 20% off your first purchase. It's Friday, 9 February. Now, two notable events occurred on this date in history.

It was on this day in 1964, I believe it was 8 p.m. East Coast time, when the Beatles first performed live on the Ed Sullivan show. It was their first live performance in the U.S. And also, on 9 February, in a shameless bit of self-promotion, more years ago than I care to admit, I was born. And people around the globe are still debating which of those two events had more impact on the world stage. And with that, welcome to the President's Daily Brief. I'm Mike Baker, your eyes and ears on the world stage. Let's get briefed. We'll kick things off in Ukraine, where President Zelensky

officially removed his top general in a significant shake-up of the country's military leadership. Later, Russia is increasingly relying on North Korea, well, there's a marriage made in heaven, and North Korean-made ballistic missiles for their war effort in Ukraine. prompting outrage this week from U.S. diplomats at the U.N. Plus, U.S.-backed forces in Syria are making a plea for greater military aid in the wake of a deadly drone attack by Iranian-backed militants. And finally, in today's back of the brief, we'll dive into reports that China,

Russia, and Iran are stepping up efforts to illegally acquire sensitive U.S. technology for their weapons programs. But first up, the PDB Spotlight. Let's begin with the situation in Ukraine, where President Zelensky has officially removed the country's top general and commander-in-chief of their military in a controversial shake-up of the country's leadership. After numerous reports suggesting his imminent ousting, General Valerie Zilluzni was replaced on Thursday by Colonel General Alexander Siersky, who had previously been serving as Ukraine's commander of ground forces. The move promises to

likely upset many within the military and the general public. Zillusioni is a widely respected figure in Ukraine. A December poll showed trust in Zelensky had fallen to 62 percent, while Zillusini enjoyed the support of roughly 88 percent of Ukrainians. That's according to a Wall Street Journal report. Insiders have alleged that Zelensky was increasingly threatened by this popularity. Now, Zelensky said Thursday in a statement, quote, I am grateful for every victory that we had achieved together. He added that he and Zilluzni spoke frankly today about what needs to change in the army. Zeluzni, for his part, did not protest as ousting. In a statement, Zeluzni said the decision was, quote, about the need to change approaches and strategy. He added, the tasks of 2022 are different from

the tasks of 2024. Therefore, everyone must change and adapt to new realities as well, end quote. Now, the tension has been building for months, as the pair had an increasingly public falling out. In December, Zalusini criticized Zelensky's decision to fire all of Ukraine's regional military recruitment heads and has consistently rebuffed the somewhat rosy picture of Ukraine's war effort that Zolensky has championed publicly. Reports last week alleged that Zolensky had offered Zilluzni a new role as a defense advisor in his bid to move him out of the way but that Zillusioni refused. Now, Zoluzzi's replacement, General Siersky also appears to enjoy the admiration in respect of his peers and front-line soldiers.

The 58-year-old led the successful defense of Kiev in the early days of the conflict. Later, he helped lead the lightning offensive in the northeastern Kharkiv region, which saw Ukrainian forces retake hundreds of square miles of territory. In April of 2022, For his efforts, Siersky was named a hero of Ukraine, the country's highest honor. Siersky has said that his priority during this transition is troop morale. He's known for regularly visiting soldiers on the front lines. Now, Colonel General Mikhailo Kovl, a senior Ukrainian commander, told the Wall Street Journal, quote, Ukraine is very lucky to have such a general.

Early last year, Sirsky led the defense of the eastern city of Bokhmut, a bloody affair that saw the deaths of thousands of soldiers. Now, at that time, he faced criticism, particularly over that episode for his battlefield tactics, with some claiming he's too willing to sacrifice Ukrainian blood for relatively small gains. The leadership shake-up comes at a time of significant uncertainty for Ukraine as they continue to repel Russian forces. The future of the conflict, in many ways, hinges on continued foreign aid to replenish their military and financial reserve. leaders of the European Union recently overcame a block on funding by Hungary, approving a 50 billion euro aid package for Ukraine on one February. In the U.S., however, a roughly $60 billion

aid package remains stuck in Congress. The U.S. Senate failed to pass the package on Wednesday due to it being tied to controversial border security proposals. However, on Thursday, the Senate voted to advance a stand-alone $95.3 billion foreign aid package, which also includes funds for Israel and Taiwan. The chamber is still debating possible amendments, and the bill will have to withstand a final vote in the coming days. Ukraine and Zelensky are at a pivotal moment in the conflict, now entering its third year. He has several critical tasks, maintaining unity and cohesion within his government and military leadership, maintaining needed manpower and morale levels within his military, aggressively and openly fighting against any evidence of corruption within government, particularly

the procurement process, improving the transparency of Ukraine's use of the international aid, and shoring up the support in the U.S. on Capitol Hill for continued aid. That is quite a to-do list. Putin, however, is playing a waiting game. He believes that he can win a war of a I mean, Russia has the manpower advantage, and Putin has solidified support from Iran and North Korea for the provision of munitions, missiles, and necessary hardware. Putin believes that he can outlast Zelensky, that the West will grow tired of the conflict and the cost of supporting Ukraine. And frankly, given the inability of U.S. politicians to come to an agreement on a new aid package, he may be right. Coming up after the break, we'll discuss Russia's use of North Korea.

and made ballistic missiles, as well as a situation in Syria where U.S.-backed forces are making a plea for greater military aid in the face of attacks by Iranian-backed militias. I'll be right back. How many discounts does USAA auto insurance offer? Too many to say here. Multi-vehicle discount. Safe driver discount? New vehicle discount. Storage discount. Legacy How many discounts will you stack up? Tap the banner or visit usa.com slash auto discounts. Restrictions apply. Kayak gets my flight, hotel, and rental car right, so I can tune out travel advice that's just

plain wrong. Bro, Skycoin, way better than points. Never fly during a Scorpio full moon. Just tell the manager you'll sue. Instant room upgrade. Stop taking bad travel advice. Start comparing hundreds of sites with kayak and get your trip right. Kayak. Got that right. Welcome back. Staying with the war in Ukraine, it appears Russia is increasingly using North Korean-made ballistic missiles in their attacks on Ukrainian cities, prompting outrage this week from U.S. diplomats at the U.N., and frankly, nobody does outrage better than U.S. diplomats at the U.N. Robert Wood, the U.S. alternate representative for special political affairs in the U.N.,

said Tuesday that U.S. intelligence showed Russian forces had used North Korean missiles at least nine times since late December, according to a report from Business Insider. In remarks at the UN, Wood said Russia and North Korea, quote, must be held accountable for their actions, which undermine longstanding obligations under UN Security Council resolutions, end quote. The South Korean ambassador to the UN echoed Wood's concerns, saying Russia used these missiles and attacks on 30 December, 2 January, and 4 January. He alleged that North Korea, is using Ukraine as, quote, a test site of its nuclear-capable missiles. Following a Russia attack on Wednesday in the city of Kharkiv,

Ukrainian officials said an initial review showed that two of the five missiles used were made by North Korea. Wednesday's attack killed at least five civilians and injured more than 50 others. The latest incident comes as we're learning more about the financial arrangements between the Putin regime and North Korea. A report from the New York Times published Wednesday found that Russia has unfrozen roughly $9 million in North Korean assets in exchange for the continued flow of munitions and missiles. Citing intelligence officials in the U.S. and UK, the report said North Korean front companies were opening new accounts in Russian territory to allow movement of the funds.

The $9 million is reportedly part of roughly 30 million of frozen North Korean assets. sets being held by Russia. Western officials have grown increasingly concerned over the relationship between Russia and North Korea. In exchange for their military equipment, Russia is also reportedly providing the Kim regime with technological assistance for their ballistic missile and reconnaissance satellite programs. All right, shifting gears to the Middle East. U.S.-backed forces in Syria are making a plea for greater military aid in the wake of a deadly drone attack by Iran. Iranian-back militants that killed six of their soldiers. The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic forces have been a key ally of the U.S. in fighting the remnants

of the Islamic State or ISIS, as well as Iranian-back militias in Syria. Muslim Abdi, commander of the SDF, said Thursday that their fighters are in desperate need of additional air defenses to protect against enemy-attack drones, according to an exclusive Reuters report. As a reminder, a base housing U.S. troops and allied Kurdish forces in eastern Syria suffered a drone attack on February 4th, linked to the Islamic resistance in Iraq, and that is an umbrella group of Shiite Muslim militias with close links to Iran's IRGC. The drone attack resulted in the death of six Kurdish soldiers. It marked the first significant attack by Iranian-backed militias in the region since the U.S. began retaliatory strikes last Friday in Iraq and Syria.

SDF commander Abdi told Reuters, it is, quote, a dangerous development when our camps are targeted in drone attacks by factions backed by Iran. He added that they require technical capabilities and an increase in the aerial defensive systems if they are to defend themselves from further aerial assaults. Addressing rumors that the U.S. may withdraw forces from the region, Abdi said he he had received assurances from U.S. military officials that the mission in Syria would continue. He warned that a U.S. withdrawal would multiply several times over the threat posed by Iranian-backed militant groups. The Islamic resistance in Iraq previously claimed responsibility for that deadly attack on U.S. troops in Jordan. A key player in this coalition is, of course, Qadaybesbollah,

and on Thursday, the U.S. took out one of their top commanders in a drone strike in Baghdad. All right, coming up in today's back of the brief, we'll look into reports that China, Russia, and Iran are stepping up efforts to illegally acquire sensitive U.S. technology. That revelation is almost as shocking as learning that there's gambling going on in Rick's Cafe. I'll be right back. Starting a business can seem like a daunting task, unless you have a partner like Shopify. They have the tools you need to start and grow your business, From designing a website to marketing to selling and beyond, Shopify can help with everything you need.

There's a reason millions of companies like Mattel, Heinz, and all birds continue to trust and use them. With Shopify on your side, turn your big business idea into... Sign up for your $1 per month trial at Shopify.com slash special offer. In today's back of the brief, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security is warning that Iran, China, and Russia are all attempting to illegally acquire sensitive U.S. technology for use in their weapons programs. Jim Mancuso, the assistant director of the Global Trade Division at Homeland Security Investigations, told ABC News on Wednesday that our adversaries are increasingly relying on a, quote, very extensive network to procure U.S. technology and bypass export laws to get the goods to places

like Iran. Mancuso said, quote, the Iranian drones that are being recovered on, on the battlefield in Ukraine than are being recovered in the battlefield throughout the Middle East. They do have sensitive U.S. communication systems and they have sensitive microelectronics, end quote. Now, some of these parts can reportedly be found in common items like radios. The networks use companies to buy the technology, manipulating sellers into thinking that the goods are bound for legitimate businesses in places like China before rerouting the shipments to U.S. adversaries. Menkuso said, quote, they're going to China, and then from China, they're going to be loaded on an Iranian aircraft, and they're going to be flown to Iran. He added that Russian networks

are also repackaging sensitive U.S. equipment to send to the front lines in Ukraine. The warning comes as the U.S. Department of Justice announced charges on Wednesday against two Iranian nationals and a U.S. citizen for engaging in schemes to transfer sensitive technology, goods, and information. to China and Iran. The scheme included technology used to detect nuclear missile launches and track ballistic and hypersonic missiles, according to a report by Axios. The Justice Department said Wednesday their disruptive technology strike force continues to work tirelessly to unwind these hostile intelligence and criminal networks. Now, as an aside, this issue, theft of technology, theft of intellectual property, theft of research and development. It has been a problem for many

decades. This is not something new. The Chinese regime has been the number one perpetrator of economic espionage and theft of critical information, but certainly Russia, Iran, and others with sufficient resources are also busy stealing whatever they can get their hands on. They do this through a wide variety of means, some relatively pedestrian, attendance and trade conferences or academic events and other forums. There's the old-fashioned espionage efforts of recruitment of human sources with access to information of interest. There's cyber attacks and access through technical means, as front companies, and the cost of the damage done over the years is almost impossible to calculate. And that, my friends, is the President's Daily Brief for Friday, 9 February.

If you have any questions or comments, please reach out to me at PDB at thefirsttv.com. I'm Mike Baker, another year older, and I'll be back later today with the PDB afternoon bulletin. Until then, stay informed, stay safe, stay cool. Ryan Reynolds here from Mint Mobile, the message for everyone paying big wireless way too much. Please, for the love of everything good in this world, stop. With Mint, you can get premium wireless for just $15 a month. Of course, if you enjoy overpaying, no judgments, but that's weird. Okay, one judgment.

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